


8, 18, 28, 38

by MarzgaPerez



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Alternate Universe, Angst, F/M, Feels, Friendship/Love, Hurt/Comfort, Soulmates, Time Skips
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-23
Updated: 2017-11-10
Packaged: 2018-09-01 15:01:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,410
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8628868
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarzgaPerez/pseuds/MarzgaPerez
Summary: Eight year old Daryl meets teenage Carol, and they form an instant friendship. Somehow, their paths seem to cross every ten years.





	1. Chapter 1

He could hear sobbing coming from the back yard. Daryl let go of his dog's leash. "Go on, boy."

The dog immediately ran towards the treehouse and began barking. Daryl caught up to him and called out. "Who's up there?"

No response. The dog continued barking. "Shhh! Quiet, boy!" Daryl picked up the leash and tied it to one of the nearby trees.

"Hey! I'm coming up!" He climbed the ladder and peered inside. The light from the moon was shining into the treehouse window, and Daryl could make out the shape of someone huddled in the corner.

As his eyes adjusted, he realized that the someone was a girl, and she was wearing a fancy dress. He knew it was fancy because it was long and puffy and shiny. "What are you doing here?"

She didn't answer him.

"Well?"

Still nothing.

"You okay?"

And then she finally spoke, just above a whisper. "I'm fine."

"But you were crying."

"Yes, but I'm fine now."

He could see that she was wiping her eyes and smoothing out the folds of her dress. He caught a glimpse of her face when she leaned forward and noticed a dark bruise forming around her eye.

"What happened?"

She quickly raised her hand to cover her eye. "Doesn't matter."

He decided to change the subject. "Do you know my brother Merle?"

She was quiet again but eventually responded. "I don't think so. Does he go to Central?"

"He quit awhile ago."

"Oh."

"What's your name?"

"Carol. What's yours?"

"I'm Daryl. Do you live close by?"

"Not too far."

"I've never seen you before."

Carol managed a small laugh and didn't seem as sad all of a sudden. "I don't think we run in the same circles. What are you, like, seven?"

"No, I'm eight. And this is my treehouse."

"Oh, I see. It's nice. Did you build it?"

"Merle did...with my pops."

"May I stay a little longer?"

"I guess so. Why are you wearing that fancy dress?"

She looked down at her dress and seemed sad again. He thought she might start crying, but she just sighed. "Tonight is my senior prom."

"What's that?"

"It's a dance. I was supposed to go with my boyfriend."

"Did he do that?" Daryl pointed towards her face. He knew what a shiner was. His old man had given him one or two over the years and plenty to Merle. But his dad had always told them it was wrong to hit a woman. So Daryl couldn't help but feel a little angry about Carol's situation. And he knew from her silence that he was right.

"Where is he now?"

She pulled at her wrist nervously. "I don't know. We got into a fight, and he pulled the car over. I shouldn't have complained."

"About what?"

"Nothing important. He forgot to get me a corsage...you know, a flower for my wrist. Or maybe he didn't have the money. When I mentioned we could stop by my friend's house to pick up an extra one, he lost it."

"He shouldn't have hit you."

"I had to get away before he did it again. I ran away. He tripped and fell trying to come after me, and I guess he left once he couldn't find me."

"Well...you're safe here." He could see that Carol was trying to smile at him, despite the pain in her face.

"Thanks. But I better get home. I was waiting until my parents went to bed. I don't want them to know about tonight. They really like Ed."

"Why?"

"He's nice most of the time. He must have been drinking."

"He's never hit you before?"

"Well...no."

"You ain't telling the truth."

Carol frowned at him. "Look, I don't feel like discussing my adult relationship with a boy. Thanks for letting me stay here, but I'll be on my way."

"Fine with me. Go." Why should he care if she wanted to make excuses for some jerk?

Carol looked at him once more before she maneuvered her dress out of the treehouse doorway and started to climb down the ladder. There was something about the sadness in her eyes that was familiar to Daryl.

"Wait." He called out to her. "I'll walk you home."

~~~~~~~~~~

"Watch out for my dog."

"Does he bite?"

"No, but he jumps. Might get mud on your dress."

Carol heeded his advice and stepped off the ladder as far from the dog as possible. "What's his name?"

Daryl jumped from the ladder and looked over at Carol. She looked like a princess in her long pink gown. He was mesmerized.

"His name?"

"Oh...yeah. Arrow."

Carol held out her hand and walked slowly over to the curious mutt. He didn't bark at her this time, just cocked his head to the side, and then sniffed her hand before she patted him. "Shall we bring him along?"

"I guess so. Which way we headed?" Daryl untied the leash and started to follow Carol towards the road. They were quiet at first, but then Carol asked Daryl about his favorite subject in school. He talked about how he liked reading and art and how he especially enjoyed recess.

Before they got too far along, Daryl made a point of walking on Carol's right side, closest to the street.

"Someone taught you some manners."

"Yeah, my grandma. But my brother tries to undo all that."

"Your brother. What's he like?" Carol listened to the boy intently as they walked side by side down the road, stopping once in awhile to let Arrow sniff around.

She didn't have siblings, but Carol helped her mother teach the youth Sunday School class. And she knew very soon that Daryl had seen and experienced much more than the average eight year old. Her heart went out to him, listening to how he went back and forth between living with one parent or the other or sometimes his grandmother. Carol felt guilty for feeling so miserable about her own life, knowing that others had it just as bad or worse.

They were close to her neighborhood when Carol noticed the lights of a car shining behind them. She could hear the car coming towards them faster and faster, so she quickly pulled Daryl out of the road. He fell to the ground, letting go of the dog's leash by accident. "Arrow!"

Thankfully, the dog circled back to them. Carol was helping Daryl up when the car slammed on its brakes a few yards in front of them.

"Shit." Carol muttered under her breath. “It’s Ed.”

She started to tremble slightly as the car door opened and a dark figure emerged, slamming the door behind him. "Hey! Where you been?"

The voice was angry and slurred, and the figure was getting closer. Daryl took Carol's hand and tried to get her to keep walking.

"Hey! I'm talking to you. Where the hell did you run off to?"

And then he was in front of them, grabbing at Carol's arm. The dog started barking and growling at Ed. Carol was sobbing and no longer able to hold onto Daryl's hand.

"Look, mister. Why don't you leave her be?"

"What's it to you, boy? I need to talk with her. Now, c'mon, Carol. That's enough of your shit for one night." He was being too rough, practically dragging her to the car.

Daryl whispered to his dog before releasing the leash. But Ed was quicker than he looked and kicked the dog in the side as it approached them. Arrow slunk over to the side of the road and whimpered.

"Keep that varmint away from me, or he'll get worse. Carol, where do you find these stray...animals?" He turned to sneer at Daryl and then slammed her against the car.

Daryl had seen enough. He felt around on the ground for some larger pieces of gravel, pulled his sling shot out of his back pocket, and fired towards Ed. The first rock hit the back window of the car and made a loud sound, almost like a bullet.

Ed turned angrily in his direction. "Did you do that boy?" In an instant, Ed was headed towards him, and Daryl could hear Carol screaming at Ed to "leave the boy alone." But Daryl got off another shot before Ed could reach him. The rock landed with a thud, square between his eyes, causing Ed to stop in his path and then stumble a few paces before crumpling to the ground.

"Run!" Daryl sprinted towards Carol and past a moaning Ed to grab Arrow's leash. As he got closer to the car, he yelled at Carol again. "Go! Go home!"

When she finally reacted and started running away from the car, Daryl headed for one of the nearby yards so that Ed wouldn't spot him. When he was safely behind some bushes, Daryl watched the blur of shiny pink fabric from Carol's prom dress disappear into the night.


	2. Chapter 2

He knew her from somewhere. Maybe one of Merle's ex-girlfriends? Nah. She kinda looked like one of the dancers at Ronnie's but was dressed too nice. He'd never seen a stripper wearing a dress suit, even in the middle of the day.

Daryl didn't have anything else to do while he waited, so he strode across the room to the water fountain to get a closer look. As he leaned down to take a sip from the lukewarm stream, he glanced her way. Nope. Not a stripper but definitely beat up in the face.

He found himself staring at the woman so long that she eventually lifted up her eyes to meet his gaze. Not one to embarrass easily, Daryl nodded at her and still unable to place her, returned to his seat.

She was attractive, he thought to himself, but clearly mixed up with some low-life. How else to explain the busted lip? She had a briefcase for Chrissakes.

And then it hit him. Those sad eyes and pale skin. Her hair was much shorter now, but he knew she had to be that girl from his treehouse. _Carol_.

He'd only seen her a few times after that night, once or twice in the grocery store or downtown. She would smile politely and look through him like nothing had ever happened. And then he'd forgotten all about her and stopped wondering if she was okay.

Daryl picked up a magazine and started flipping through the pages, looking over at her every couple of minutes. Should he say something?

Before he could approach her, an officer came out from the back area and sat down next to her. They spoke quietly. The officer appeared to be very concerned about her situation.

Carol was fidgeting in her chair. She felt like everyone in the room was staring at her, especially the young guy with the black eye and the wings on his back.

 _God, if she could just get this over with_. Ed was probably in the holding cell, kicking the walls and declaring his innocence. Officer Walsh told her to think about pressing charges, but what good would that do?

Carol needed to think things over. She told the officer as much as he picked up his clipboard and walked back to the office area, shaking his head.

Then Carol felt someone standing next to her.

"Remember me?"

She looked up, unfamiliar with the voice. It was the guy with the wings.

"I'm sorry. Do I know you?" She and Ed had been in Atlanta for the past few years, so maybe this was someone she knew from before. But it was rare that she spent time with long-haired biker types who apparently had nothing better to do than hang out at police stations.

Or what if Ed was testing her? Maybe he had convinced this young guy to flirt with her. Ed always did have a jealous streak, which was even worse lately.

"I'm Daryl." He took the seat next to her. "We met in my treehouse a while back." A look of recognition and then shame spread over her face. She started pulling at her wedding ring nervously, but he continued. "I was hoping if I ever saw you again, things would be better for you."

She sighed, remembering that night and the sweet boy who had saved her - at least for a few days - from Ed's wrath. She'd seen Daryl around a few times afterwards but didn't want to worry him with any of her problems. Seemed like he had enough of his own. "I was hoping the same for you too."

"Me? What? This?" Daryl pointed towards his black eye. "I was helping my brother out. He's the one in the slammer. I'm just waiting to see if they're gonna let him go anytime soon."

"Oh."

"Why are you here?" Daryl had changed his tone from concerned to accusatory. When he realized how shitty he sounded, he backed down. "You're not still...with him?"

Carol didn't dare look him in the eyes. "Guilty as charged. And you know the kicker?" Carol took the briefcase she had been holding in her lap and lowered it to the floor. "I'm pregnant."

She almost laughed out loud from pure exhaustion and desperation. It was amusing that she had crossed paths once again with her one-time savior, but there was little Daryl would be able to do this time.

"Shit." Daryl scratched the stubble on his chin. "Well...at least let me buy you a cup of coffee."

~~~~~~~~~~

"What set him off this time?" They had walked to a nearby diner where everyone seemed to know Daryl. At first, Carol had hesitated about going somewhere with a man that wasn't her husband. What if Ed found out that instead of working on getting him released, she was spending time with another man? But in the end, she decided he could stew a little while longer as she wanted to know what Daryl had been up to.

"Let's talk about something else. Have you graduated?"

"Not so fast. Are you gonna be okay?"

Carol picked up her cup of decaf and took a long sip before responding. "I think he'll get help after this. He promised me...for the baby."

"And if he's lying...will you leave?"

"I don't want to break up our family. Besides, I only work part time in an office. I don't make enough to be on my own."

Daryl didn't know what to say. He knew it wasn't as easy as just walking out the door. Hell, it took him awhile to work up the courage to move out from his old man's place.

Carol cleared her throat. "So...back to you. What have you been doing, besides rough housing with your brother?"

"Well...honestly...nothing." Daryl didn't understand how he could go from feeling like he had not a care in the world to being completely embarrassed about his life. And just from one raised eyebrow from this woman who he hardly knew. He suddenly felt sick to his stomach. Why did he care what she thought anyway?

"Yeah, I live with Merle in a small apartment above the old five and dime. How about you?"

"You remember my old neighborhood from that night? We're staying at my parents' place. My dad retired early, and they bought an RV. Worked out for us to have a place to stay."

"Guess so. Know what you're having?" Daryl nodded towards her protruding belly.

"Yes. A girl." Carol patted her stomach gently.

He wanted to be happy for her, but he already knew what they would be up against. "Shit. You need to get away from him. She don't need to see that. You oughta press charges and get a restraining order."

Just then, Carol burst into tears, and the waitress came around from behind the counter with a pot of coffee. "You need a refill, honey? What's Daryl done now?" She then proceeded to pop Daryl on the back of the head.

"Jacqui, I ain't done nothing. She's a friend is all, having a rough time." Daryl got up abruptly and turned to Jacqui. "I'm gonna get my truck and take her home. Will you keep an eye on her for me?"

Jacqui nodded and put the coffee pot down on the table as she knelt closer to Carol and patted her on the back reassuringly.

~~~~~~~~~~

"It's that one. With the blue shutters."

"Want me to help you pack?"

"Daryl..."

"Well, at least think about it."

"I know Ed. He'll come around. I just need to be more patient."

Daryl sighed. "You're more lost than I am." There wasn't much more he could say.

"Thanks for the ride. And the coffee."

Daryl grunted and started tapping the steering wheel impatiently. Carol could tell he was frustrated with her.

She put her hand on the door and readied her things but turned to speak to him once more. "How are you so wise to be so young?"

Daryl grunted again and proceeded to get out of the car and walk around to the passenger side, opening the door for Carol. "Cuz I've seen it all. Or I've seen enough. Here." He held out his hand to take her things.

"Thank you."

Daryl pushed a crumpled up piece of paper in her hand. "It's my grandma's number. She ain't going anywhere no time soon. You call her if you need me, and she'll get word to me. You think about what I said. Hell, at least let him sweat it out overnight in there. You deserve better...and so does your daughter."

It was kind of him to say that, but Carol didn't believe it. Still, she was grateful for his concern and patted his arm before turning to go. "You take care. And good luck."

"You too."


	3. Chapter 3

"Sophia! Get back here!" Carol didn't like her daughter wandering too far away. Not after everything they'd been through.

Carol turned to her friend. "I'll be right back." She sprinted over towards Sophia, who was standing a few feet away from a homeless man sleeping on a park bench.

"Sweetheart. What are you doing? You can't just walk away. Come back with us. Andre wants you to push him on the swing."

"But, Mama. Look!" Sophia pointed in the direction of the sleeping man. "On his back. Wings!"

Carol shushed her daughter but then whispered to her gently. "I see that, but you need to let him be."

"Maybe he's hungry. Or cold. Let's get him a blanket from the car."

"Sophia."

Just then, the man began to stir and turned over to glare at them. "Can I get some peace and quiet?"

They stepped back, and Carol shielded Sophia. "Sir, I'm very sorry." Before he turned back around, Carol caught a glimpse of his face. There was something about the way he had squinted his eyes that reminded her of...

"Daryl?" She whispered his name under her breath.

Sophia looked up at her mother. "You know him?"

"I think so. Go back over with Michonne."

"No, mama. I don't want to leave you."

"It's alright. He's a friend."

Sophia backed away slowly, continuing to keep a close watch on her mother.

Carol moved closer to the bench and tapped the man on the shoulder.

"Daryl? Daryl Dixon?"

He slowly turned back around and made eye contact with Carol. The light of the morning sun was making it difficult for him to see anything. He sat up slowly and after a minute, realized who was standing in front of him.

"Carol?"

"Yes. You remembered. Are you alright?"

Daryl wiped the drool from the corners of his mouth and tried to smooth down his hair. "Yeah. I'm fine. We gotta quit meeting like this."

"You're right about that." She pointed towards the bench. "May I?"

He nodded at her, and Carol sat down. She noticed a stench of alcohol and stale cigarettes wafting from him.

"You got a light?"

"No." She paused. "I haven't smoked since...before I left Ed."

Daryl seemed to wake up from his drowsy stupor. "You finally left that son of a bitch?!" He slapped his knee. "That's about the best damn piece of news I've heard in ages."

Carol wanted to smile but instead, she looked down into her lap, still regretting that she hadn't done it years before.

"It was for her." She pointed in Sophia's direction and waved to let her daughter know that everything was okay. "That's Sophia. Do you want to meet her?"

Daryl ran his fingers through his hair. "Naw. Not like this." He sat up taller and straightened his vest.

"Do you need any money?"

"Money?"

"Or a place to stay?"

Daryl forced a laugh. "I ain't living in the streets. Just had a bender last night. Didn't make it back to my place is all."

"Oh." What more could she say? Should she give him her number?

He cleared his throat. "I'd like to see you again, Carol. Hear about what happened and all that. Cuz if I walk away now, it might be another ten years."

Carol laughed softly. "What about meeting somewhere later? I could ask my friend Michonne to watch Sophia."

"Yeah. That'd be alright. You oughta come over to my place. It ain't much, but I would at least have a drink for you. How about tonight?"

What did she have to lose? "Um...sure. Okay. What's your address?"

~~~~~~~~~~

Michonne gave her a puzzled look but decided not to ask too many questions. It was the first time she had seen Carol even mildly excited.

"Just be careful. That's not the safest part of town. And text me if you need anything."

Sophia had fallen asleep on the sofa while watching a movie with Andre, which worked out better for Carol. She didn't have to explain anything or make up a story. Carol leaned down to kiss her daughter on the forehead before heading out the door.

 _What am I doing_ , she thought to herself during the cab ride over to Daryl's apartment. But Carol wanted him to know that she was okay, and she wanted to know why things didn't seem so great for him. And maybe, just maybe, they would be in the same place long enough for her to help him.

~~~~~~~~~~

She had just sent a text to Michonne when Daryl opened the door to his apartment. "Hey. You made it. Come on in."

He looked different now, like maybe he had slept a little more and showered and shaved.

"You look nice." _Wait. Did she say that out loud? Did it sound like she was coming on to him?_ Daryl didn't seem to take it that way.

"Yeah. Thanks. Last night was something else. And it kinda spilled over into this morning. I didn't plan on running into anyone I know."

Carol gave him a reassuring smile and continued to stand near the door, her eyes fixed on him.

He spoke next. "I like your hair."

Upon hearing this, Carol self-consciously ran her hand over her curls. "Thanks. I'm letting it grow out."

"Want a drink?"

"Sure, whatever you're having."

He gestured for her to have a seat and then walked over to the refrigerator.

Carol sat on the edge of the couch while taking notice of the rest of the apartment. The main room was adjacent to the small kitchen, and she noticed a few more doors that probably contained a bedroom and bathroom. She figured that he had shoved any clutter into those rooms, knowing that she might be coming over. Or maybe he was a minimalist. There really wasn't much in the way of any personal items or possessions.

Daryl joined her with two cold beers. "Here you go."

"Thanks." She took a small sip from the bottle as Daryl sat down across from her. "So...Atlanta. How come?"

"I could ask you the same."

"Ladies first."

Carol put the beer down on the floor next to her and paused. "I, uh, heard about a shelter down here. Brought me and Sophia. Met Michonne who helped me with all of the legal stuff to get custody and a divorce."

"Where's that low-life now?"

"Dunno. Back home, I guess. He hasn't bothered us much down here. He'll e-mail Sophia from time to time."

"What finally did it?"

Carol picked up her beer for another sip. Then she took a deep breath, tears welling up in her eyes.

He knew she didn't need him to, but he moved over next to her and put his arm around her, gently pulling her towards him. Maybe selfishly, he needed to feel useful for once.

She sunk into his body, her head resting against his chest. Carol could hear his heart beating rapidly.

"It was the wings."

"What do you mean?"

"Sophia. She was only four years old, and she was in the church daycare for a few hours when I worked. And all she wanted to do was draw angel wings. And cut out angels wings. I would ask her about the wings, and at first she would say: _Mommy, I made these wings to protect you_. And then later, it was: _Mommy, I made these wings to help us fly away_. And then I remembered your stupid vest and the conversation we had in that coffee shop. I tried calling the number you gave me, but the line was disconnected."

"Shit, Carol. I woulda helped you. They moved my grandma to an old folks home."

"No, it's fine. I didn't need you to come to my rescue. I just needed to get my little girl someplace safe. And I did." Carol wiped the tears from her face with the corner of her shirt sleeve. She lingered in Daryl's embrace a few more minutes before slowly inching back so that she could look him in the eyes.

"So...your turn. How are you?"

Daryl became still and didn't say a word. A pained look spread across his face. Carol waited patiently until he spoke.

"I've been better."

Carol patted his hand as if encouraging him to continue. "Tell me?"

"Fuck. I'll tell you. I didn't even care how pathetic I looked when you found me today. I don't even care..." And then Daryl broke down, right in front of her. He buried his face in the couch, punching it repeatedly as Carol sat next to him, refraining from judgment, just wishing she could do something.

"What happened, Daryl?"

And in between angry sobs, he told her how he'd come to Atlanta with Merle, how they'd burglarized cars and homes and made off with what they could for as long as they could. Merle got busted and was serving 10 - 15, so Daryl finally decided to pick up a few odd jobs as a mechanic and a handy man in the building he was living in. Only Daryl said it wasn't really living.

And then just a few days ago, he'd found out about his old man dying, but there wasn't any money for a burial like his dad had wanted, so they cremated him and contacted Daryl to pick up the ashes. And he still hadn't told Merle because even though his father was a shit to both of them, Merle still had a fondness for the old dirtbag.

Daryl paused to take a breath. It was more than he had spoken to anyone in a long time. He didn't keep much company, just visits with Merle at the prison and the occasional hooker (but he didn't share that detail with Carol).

Before they realized it, several hours had passed, and Carol's phone began to buzz with frantic text messages from Michonne. She responded to let her know that everything was fine. Carol knew she had to get back to Sophia, so she told Daryl and called for a cab.

Daryl offered his hand to Carol to help her up from the sofa. She smiled at him and shoved his hand away. "I'm not that old."

"Yeah, you are."

He walked her over to the door and grabbed his keys. "I'm gonna walk you to the cab."

"You don't have to. Just watch me from the window.

"Alright. Hey, Carol? Thanks."

"No, thank you." Carol turned to kiss Daryl on his cheek, but he pulled away.

Instead, he leaned in to kiss her gently on the lips. She was surprised, but she wasn't, and she lingered there, slowly moving her hands down by his side, not wanting to leave him just yet. But it was time to go.

"You have my number. Call me for anything, Daryl. Don't let so much time go by."

"I won't." He muttered to himself as she turned to go.


	4. Chapter 4

"Mom? Daryl?"

Carol could hear a distant voice calling her name. And Daryl next to her...

"Hey. Get up. It's Sophia."

Carol buried her face into the pillow and pulled the covers around her. "What time is it?"

"Woman, put your clothes on. Sophia's downstairs. And Danny is probably awake now.”

"Oh. Shit." She bolted upright, opening her eyes and catching a quick glimpse of Daryl's ass before he finished pulling on his sweatpants.

He turned around and looked at her. "I can see that you're mesmerized, but you gotta hurry up." He tossed Carol a handful of clothes, most of what she had been wearing the night before.

And then Sophia called out again. "Mom? Are you awake? Anyone?"

"Hold on, Sophia! Coming!" Carol pulled on her clothes as quickly as possible. Daryl stepped outside of their room and met Danny in the hallway.

“Morning, bud.”

“Hey, Dad. Where’s Mom?”

“Eh, you know your mom. Not a morning person.”

“Can I go see Sophia?”

“Yeah. Of course.”

Danny scampered down the stairs with Daryl behind him. Carol could hear their chatter and laughter as she ran a brush through her hair and glanced at herself in the mirror.

She almost didn’t recognize the woman staring back at her. This person with slight wrinkles around her eyes and lips in places where she never thought possible. Back when she hardly ever smiled. But that was a long time ago.

Sure, everything wasn’t perfect all the time. She and Daryl struggled with money sometimes, and he’d shut her out every now and again, still haunted by ghosts from his past. Or Merle would come into town and stir up old memories that Daryl had tried to bury. Carol understood. She wasn’t entirely free from her past. Every once in a while, she’d meet some jerk who reminded her of Ed or try to help someone that reminded her of her former self. But Ed hadn’t taken her life away. She hadn’t let him.

Carol went downstairs to greet her daughter and was welcomed by the warmth of Sophia’s smile and the smell of coffee brewing.

“Everything go okay?” Carol hugged Sophia and then pressed her forehead into Sophia’s, awaiting her response.

“It did. Carl came with me.”

“Carl Grimes?”

“He was worried about me.”

Daryl cleared his throat and spoke up. “Well, I may have put a bug in his ear.”

“Daryl?!?” Sophia moved away from her mother and took a seat at the table, reaching over to pound Daryl lightly on the shoulder.

Carol walked over to them, patting Sophia’s shoulders and then the top of Danny’s head. He was oblivious to their conversation, devouring a bowl of cereal while engrossed in a comic book.

“What’s important is that Mrs. Anderson and her kids are in a safe house now. Daryl, save the match-making for another time.”

Sophia folded her arms smugly but mouthed the words “thank you” towards Daryl when her mother went over to the counter to fix a cup of coffee.

“Besides, he’ll be over here anyway tonight.”

“What?”

“Yeah. I invited Rick and Michonne over for dinner. Figured Carl would tag along.”

Carol brought two mugs over to the table and sat one down in front of Daryl. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her into his lap.

“Careful. I don’t want to spill this on you.”

“I’ll be fine.” Daryl took the mug from her hands and set it down. He kissed her gently on the neck, and Carol turned to wrap her arms around him.

“Really, you too? Get a room.” Sophia rolled her eyes, and Danny looked up from his comic book.

“Gross.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love them together. Sigh.


End file.
